3 Tools That Will Help You Keep a Consistent Blogging Schedule

Have you ever struggled with blogging consistently? I am here to tell you that you are not alone in your struggles…

I’m gonna keep it all the way (100) aka truthful with you.

When I launched my blog last year I struggled with writing content consistently.

Every week I would fumble around for hours (sometimes days at a time) racking my brain up trying to figure out what the heck I was going to write.

Soo… I felt it was time to write a post to cover this topic because it’s one of the main problems that bloggers face.

In fact, one of my dear readers left a comment a little while back on a previous blog post I wrote about blogging for business that reads:

This comment prompted me to write this post..

Along with blogging consistently, some of the other issues most bloggers run into are:

1. Coming up with original and engaging content: Ya…it’s tough as heck to create content that hits a homerun every single blog post …especially on the fly.

2. Research: You’ve got a gazillion ideas…but you’re not sure if they are what your audience wants to hear about. I’m going to assume that you take to the internet and spend hours online doing research trying to find topics to blog about.

And third…

3. Finding the time to blog: Yea so I used to get hung up on this too. But here’s the way I see it, we all ONLY have 24 hours in a day. It’s up to you to take control of your time (aka prioritize). So if you want to blog, then you have to make time to do it.

The REAL Reason Most People Struggle with Blogging Consistently

When I was putting together Blog Like a CHAMP, it dawned on me that one of the MAIN reasons people struggle might due to this:

Lack of planning and organization

Or…maybe this is the main reason that I struggled so much with blogging I didn’t have a system in place that I could follow easily to produce blog content.

It kind of goes back to the old saying “planning to fail is failing to plan”.

I’m here to tell you peeps that if you do not have a plan in place for blogging, you will continue to struggle.

I didn’t understand the power of planning until a few months after I launched this blog. I was frustrated and spinning my wheels with producing blog content.

It was then that I had a conversation with a dear friend that helped me understand what I was doing wrong and the tools I was lacking in my blogging arsenal.

These are 3 key resources that helped me blog more consistently and with ease that I am excited to share with you.

Resources that Help Me Blog Consistently

#1: An Editorial Calendar

Guys…my editorial calendar is a staple in my blogging toolbox.

I really have to give all of the credit to one of my good friends Shannon Henderson of ImShannon.com for helping me understand the importance of using an editorial calendar.

One day, Shannon and I were having a conversation about blogging. I was telling her that I was having a hard time coming up with blog post content and felt like a headless chicken.

I admitted to Shannon that I am not the most organized person in the world and that I thought she was doing a great job with her marketing and blogging.

She asked me “Kim, are you using an editorial calendar”? My response, ”Why do I even need one”?

Shannon pretty much gave me a swift kick in the pants about not having an editorial calendar and helped me understand its importance.

After I created my editorial calendar, blogging has been a lot easier for me. An editorial calendar helps you:

Stay on track every month

Plan out your blogging topics in advance (Month, Theme, Topics)

Acts as a reference point for all of the content that you write on a monthly basis

#2: Evernote (or a tool similar)

Evernote is #BAE for real. This app is much more than a note-taking tool guys. It is really a powerful organization and planning app too.

Evernote is the resource that I use to record blog topics on the fly and organize them using “Notebooks” that I create in the application.

For instance:

Anytime that I have a blog topic that pops up in my head, I immediately record it in evernote and tag it under a “Notebook” called “blog post topics”.

So…whenever I feel like I have run out of ideas for content to write, I just pull up my evernote and take a look at some of the topics that I recorded.

I highly recommend that you do the same thing.

As soon as you can, download the Evernote app, create a notebook for your blog posts ideas and start adding topics to it.

I’m telling you, you’re gonna love it.

#3: A Content Calendar

You are probably thinking “Ummm Kim…isn’t an editorial calendar and content calendar the same thing?

I’m sorry to rain on your parade, but they are not…

An editorial calendar and a content calendar are two different things that serve different purposes:

An editorial calendar is the reference point for all of the activities and content that you write about on your blog

Your content calendar is the reference point for the “specific” blog posts that you write

So in essence, your content calendar will list out the blog post titles that you will create on your blog.

Tools You Can Use to Create an Editorial and Content Calendar

If you are looking for tools for creating an editorial and content I am creating a round-up of resources for you:

Google Sheets – this is the tool that I use to create my editorial calendar and content calendar. I used Google Sheets to create the editorial and content calendar that I use for this blog. I love this program because I can access my calendars anytime that I need to from a device connected to the internet.

Trello – I primarily use Trello to manage the web design projects that I do for my clients. But I’ve heard from some of my friends in the blogging world that they loveeee using Trello to create their editorial calendars.

Coschedule – I’ve heard nothing but great things about Coschedule’s editorial calendar tool. Coschedule allows you to create an editorial calendar within a single dashboard. From this dashboard you can also manage your social media posts, product launches and more.

As I’ve stated initially, blogging consistently pretty much comes down to planning accordingly and also a willingness to put in the time to blog.

What To Do If You Don’t Have a Blogging Schedule and Content Production System in Place?

If you are frustrated with your current blogging efforts and need a step by step system to creating an editorial calendar and planning out content for your blog, then Blog Like a CHAMP is will help.

If you do have a system in place for producing content, I’d love to know what tools you are using and why. Please add your comments below.

Kim

Kim, YourChicGeek is a tech savvy diva + founder of YourChicGeek.com. She is passionate about teaching small biz's how to go from unnoticed to unstoppable online using tech and digital marketing. Kim has created several online courses and DIY trainings in the Blazing Branding Academy that help small businesses flourish online. You can contact Kim to hop on a quick 15 minute call to chat about your digital marketing goals.

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